About

Learn more about Rollin' In Dough's mission and story.

Learn More

Mission

Rollin' In Dough Baking Company strives to exceed expectations and maintain high standards by using good-quality and natural ingredients, by baking with traditional methods and techniques, and by providing personal service to all customers.

History

2018

Some random information about the picture. This loaf was made for Thanksgiving. It was yummy. That is all.

Michael Thompson is the owner and baker at Rollin' In Dough Baking Company. He started the business when he was 17 out of a determination to learn the craft of Artisan Baking. After spending several years routinely baking various breads and pastries at home, he came to realize that if he were to truly master the craft he would have to increase his production scale so he could gain extra practice making various baked goods as well as experience working with larger quantities. In order to gain this experience, he began baking breads out of his home kitchen and delivering them to anyone who would order.

Rollin' In Dough's first day of operation took place on August 8, 2018 when Michael simply put a post on Facebook saying that he was making giant pretzels from scratch and would be delivering them at the end of the day. He started with just enough dough for 40 pretzels and sold them for a dollar apiece, taking orders on a first-come first-serve basis. Within hours he had sold out, but orders were still coming in, so he quickly mixed up a second batch of dough in order to make 20 more pretzels, all of which sold too. Once both batches were done, he rushed out of the house to make deliveries. While delivering, he found that, although he loved to bake, it was sharing his baked goods with others that brought the most joy. Thus, Rollin' In Dough Baking Company began and Michael started baking various breads for his customers once a week.

This all took place the summer before Michael's senior year of high school and once school started up again he had to reduce his operations. He continued to bake for his customers, but only on special occasions such as Thanksgiving. In the meantime, he continued growing his business: building Rollin' In Dough's website and starting an email list where all of his customers might find out about upcoming bake days.

2019

Some random information about the picture. This loaf was made for Thanksgiving. It was yummy. That is all.

As the 2019 school year neared to a close, Michael prepared for serious expansion at Rollin' In Dough Baking Company. He began making arrangements to rent the Rifle Fairground's commercial kitchen in order to sell his products to local shops and cafés as well as to individual customers. This new kitchen would not only allow him to provide baked goods to substantially more people, but also to continue in his efforts to learn the craft of baking.

Michael says that it was during this time that he was able to figure out the logistics of making hundreds (on a couple of occasions, over one thousand) baked goods from scratch as well as where his limits were. On multiple occasions, he recalls, his family had to come to the rescue when he had gotten in over his head and he is grateful, for without their help he would have never made it this far.

While renting the kitchen, Michael noticed a piece of equipment that was perfect for frying large quantities of donuts and thus the idea for 'A Brunch of Donuts' was born. He began thinking, 'We have so many places to get donuts, but they are really all the same. What if there was a way to show some of the amazing things you can do with a donut that you never get to see?' At A Brunch of Donuts, he did just that, starting the meal off with Mozzarella Bombolini - small balls of mozzarella wrapped in donut-dough and fried to perfection, served with home-made marinara sauce. Next came the main focus of the event: an unbelievably delicious donut breakfast sandwich made to order and served on a fresh, rich donut. Finally came dessert and this is where Michael challenged himself the most. He did not want to simply make the same-old donuts you could find at any other donut-shop but wanted something truly sublime. For this he had to test his creative abilities and the results were a fantastic, Lemon-Meringue Donut filled with from-scratch lemon curd and topped with toasted, Italian meringue as well as a rich Chocolate-Mousse Donut filled with Michael's own recipe for chocolate mousse and topped with whipped cream and chocolate shavings.

The brunch not only featured fantastic food but also upbeat, live music and fresh, local coffee. It was such a success that Michael plans to continue the event - hosting one annually each summer. For more information, go to rollinindoughbakingcompany.com/brunch

2020

Some random information about the picture. This loaf was made for Thanksgiving. It was yummy. That is all.

The year 2020 had a bitter-sweet beginning as Michael had to officially leave his business behind and head off to college. On January 6th, he began his first semester at College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, Missouri where he is pursuing a double-major in Culinary Arts and Hotel & Restaurant Management. The college requires its students to participate in its on-campus work program in order to pay for tuition so that they may graduate debt-free. Students only have to pay for room, board, and books making the college incredibly affordable.

Michael's on-campus job is in the Keeter Center - a hotel and resort located just above the college. He works in the kitchen and hopes to stay there so that he can gain experience working at all of the stations in the kitchen. Beyond his work experience, Michael is obtaining an education which he hopes will help prepare him to eventually own and operate his own bakery.

Michael says that while it is certainly unfortunate that he cannot currently bake for his wonderful customers, he hopes to one day come home, bringing the knowledge and experience he gained while away in order to provide even more customers with delicious, from-scratch breads and pastries made with a love and passion for good food.